Palestinians line up to receive a hot meal at a food distribution point in Gaza City on Friday. After more than 20 months of devastating conflict, rights groups say Gaza's population of more than two million face famine-like conditions. — AFP GAZA CITY, June 27 (Agencies): Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 72 people across the Gaza Strip in the past 24 hours, according to hospital officials, as humanitarian groups report a growing toll among Palestinians seeking aid amid the ongoing conflict.
Gaza's Government Media Office said on Thursday that more than 549 Palestinians have been killed over the past month while attempting to access humanitarian assistance. Another 4,066 have reportedly been injured near aid distribution sites operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is supported by the United States and Israel.
The figures come as the war between Israel and Hamas enters its ninth month, with Palestinian health officials now reporting at least 56,259 people killed and 132,458 wounded in Gaza since the conflict began. Israel launched its military campaign following the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, which killed 1,139 people in Israel and resulted in the abduction of more than 200 others.
The rising number of civilian casualties around aid distribution points has drawn increasing scrutiny from international observers and humanitarian organizations, who warn that a collapsing relief system is pushing more people toward danger in search of basic supplies.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate, with access to food, water, and medical care becoming increasingly limited. Aid agencies have warned that the continued violence around relief efforts is compounding an already catastrophic crisis for the territory's civilian population.
Meanwhile, Iran will hold what it described as "historic" funeral proceedings in Tehran on Saturday for 60 killed in its 12-day war with Israel, including top military commanders and nuclear scientists.
The commemorations will begin at 0800 local time (0430 GMT) at Enghelab (Revolution) Square in central Tehran, followed by a funeral procession to Azadi (Freedom) Square, about 11 kilometres (7 miles) away.
"A brief ceremony will be held there, then the processions of the martyrs will go toward Azadi Square," said Mohsen Mahmoudi, head of Tehran's Islamic Development Coordination Council, in a televised interview Friday.
"Tomorrow will be a historic day for Islamic Iran and the revolution," he added. Among the dead is General Mohammad Bagheri, a major general in Iran's Revolutionary Guards and the second-in-command of the armed forces after supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He will be buried alongside his wife and daughter, a journalist for a local media outlet, all killed in an Israeli attack.
Nuclear scientist Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, also killed in the attacks, will be buried with his wife.
Four women and four children are among those to be honoured at the funeral ceremony.
Iran says US strikes on nuclear sites
complicate prospects for talks
Iran's foreign minister has said that the possibility of new negotiations with the United States over Tehran's nuclear program has been complicated by recent American military strikes that caused "serious damage" to Iranian nuclear sites.
The United States was among the original parties to the 2015 nuclear agreement, under which Iran agreed to curb its uranium enrichment activities in return for sanctions relief and other benefits. However, the deal collapsed after then-U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement during his first term.
Trump, who has expressed interest in renewed talks with Iran, recently claimed that negotiations between the two sides would take place next week. In an interview aired on Iranian state television late Thursday, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran had not agreed to resume talks but did not rule out the possibility entirely.
"No agreement has been made for resuming the negotiations," Araghchi said. "No time has been set, no promise has been made, and we haven't even talked about restarting the talks."
Araghchi noted that the recent U.S. military intervention "made it more complicated and more difficult" to restart discussions on Iran's nuclear programme.
© 2025 - All Rights with The Financial Express
